Vietnam: The Definitive History of the War

Join award-winning historian Christopher Bellitto on this gripping journey through centuries of Greek history. Ancient Greece was one of the most fertile civilizations in history, and its influence on Western philosophy, theology, and civilization is undeniable. Now, you can discover the fascinating legacy of ancient Greece through entertaining and enlightening lectures. With Prof. Bellitto, you will gain a deeper understanding of what made ancient Greece so unique: its polis and democracy, its great battles and personalities, its soaring artistic and literary achievements. You'll also explore dark corners of this civilization, such as its treatment of women and slaves. You will travel from the walls of Troy to the theatres of Athens, from the Delphic oracle to the Spartans' stand at Thermopylae, from Socrates' trial and Alexander the Great's long journeys to the moment where Rome conquered Greece. You'll begin by asking where ancient Greece fits on a broad canvas of world history, geography, and chronology viewed from a wide-angle lens. You will move forward in time, stopping often to explore closely important moments, topics, and themes. You will cover the most essential events in ancient Greece as you travel through millennia of history. Join Prof. Bellitto on this fascinating journey today.

Named one of America's best professors by the Princeton Review, Christopher R. Fee invites you to explore your heritage from an unconventional angle: through the origin and development of the English language. Professor Fee is an award-winning professor and medievalist whose expertise spans Old English, Old Norse, and historical linguistics. With flair and gusto, he draws from this well of knowledge to help you trace the evolution of English across a fascinating range of cultures. In liberal arts fashion, this series of 24 lectures mixes the study of technical subjects (like phonetics, linguistics, and historical grammar) with cultural and historic topics, such as the impact of the Norman Invasion on Old English, the advent of the printing press, the place of Ebonics in the modern public-school curriculum, how English became a world language, and how close the Vikings came to ensuring that this course might have been about Danish instead of English. Prof. Fee has a knack for combining scholarly insight with great storytelling. Expect to enjoy his account of the characters "worthy of a seamy soap opera" tasked with writing a dictionary. Language is the foundation of human culture. It is a vital part of who we are and a subject invaluable to anyone interested in the humanities.

Join Pulitzer-Prize-winning, bestselling author Jared Diamond in asking some of the biggest questions of our existence. Do you create your own destiny? Or do you merely play whatever hand the universe has dealt you? This provocative audieries will stimulate your mind by raising these and other timeless questions about free will and determinism. As you analyze these competing philosophies, you will find that every answer raises fascinating new questions about morality, fate, consciousness, and the existence of a higher power. In this masterful audio series, host Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn welcomes a total of 13 guest experts to discuss free will, identity, and the possibility of the afterlife. Each episode is crafted as a series of one-on-one interviews. Kuhn’s interlocutors include Jared Diamond, Peter van Inwagen, and Daniel Clement Dennett III. A Pulitzer-Prize-winning author of field-spanning books on human societies, Diamond is a professor of geography at UCLA. Meanwhile, Notre Dame philosophy professor van Inwagen is a leading figure in contemporary metaphysics, philosophy of religion, and philosophy of action. Dennett, a philosophy professor and cognitive scientist, is director of the Center for Cognitive Studies at Tufts University. Recent neuroscientific discoveries have fanned the flames of the free will debate. The implications of this debate are far-reaching and potentially paradigm-shifting. Explore its vital questions with the world’s greatest minds. Note: Lectures 1 and 3—“Is Free Will an Illusion?” and “Why Is Free Will a Mystery?”—were funded in part by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

Stuart Vyse, Ph.D., is the author of "Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition," which received the William James Book Award of the American Psychological Association. A celebrated psychologist and professor as well as a recognized author, he is the perfect guide for this audio series on the power of superstition. This wide-ranging course reveals the method to our madness in everything from finances to Friday the 13th. An expert on irrational behavior, Prof. Vyse discusses what it means to be rational before delving into the many reasoning errors and psychological challenges that lead us astray. In 15 lectures, you will learn to identify the logical fallacies and quirks of our psychology that tempt us to make unwise decisions. While the course is based in theory, it's also teeming with practical advice. You'll examine several popular conspiracy theories before exploring the remarkable staying power of common "bad luck" superstitions: How did these superstitions come to be? Is it always bad to be irrational? At what point do our beliefs veer into the territory of wishful thinking or willful ignorance? Packed with fun examples and everyday pointers, this course leaves you thinking long and hard about how you think. With Prof. Vyse's guidance, you'll learn to better understand your beliefs and make better decisions.

From free speech to fair trials, many of your rights as an American are guaranteed by the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. Known as the Bill of Rights, this enduring document—along with its interpretation—continues to inspire debate and shape our lives. But if you're like most Americans, you haven't had a chance to explore the Constitution and its fascinating history since you were a teenager. Now, The Bill of Rights: Understanding the Constitution and Your Freedoms offers you an engaging and accessible refresher led by a legal scholar and expert on the Bill of Rights. Under the guidance of award-winning Professor David L. Hudson, Jr., you'll begin by examining the historic development of the Bill of Rights. Then you'll turn your attention to the freedoms found in its pages. Throughout the course, Prof. Hudson uses contemporary examples to help you grasp the meaning and implications of your individual liberties. In 19 lectures, you'll explore the deeper meaning of those liberties. Some of the most famous include freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to keep and bear arms. Others you may be less familiar with include freedom of assembly, freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances, freedom from double jeopardy, and the right to a grand jury. Don't just know your rights. For an enjoyable, memorable, and illuminating discussion of what Madison once called the Great Rights of Mankind, look no further.

How does your brain work? This 15-lecture audio course will increase your excitement and wonder about the mysterious organ responsible for so many of the invisible but important things (like love, personality, and emotion) that make us who we are. The field of neuroscience is booming, heralding bold new discoveries and fresh insights into human nature, our behaviors, the mind - body connection, and even artificial intelligence. Now, How Your Brain Works: A User's Guide to Neuropsychology gives you exactly the sort of orientation you need to contextualize these discoveries and understand your brain. Your guide is Professor Gerald D. Griffin (Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania), winner of several awards from national research institutions and of the Janet L. Andersen Excellence in Teaching Award at Hope College. You will find that Prof. Griffin brings an infectious energy to every lecture. He makes you appreciate what a fascinating and multidisciplinary field neuroscience is - building on the discoveries of biology, chemistry, physics, and psychology to arrive at new understandings of the nervous system and behavior. Though this course, you will gain a better understanding of how the chemistry, structure, and electrical connections of your brain give rise to complex perceptions and behavior. By the end, you will understand how a multitude of small, delicate changes in the nervous system shape your reality.